The season is done.......

And just like that, 7 months have passed....by this time tomorrow, the Oval ice will be but just a puddle.

Saturday and Sunday were the sprints....a 500m and 1,000m per day.....one day you start on the inner lane, the next, on the outer lane or vice versa. My Saturday had me starting on the outer lanes for both races and although they went well, I only hovered around my previous PBs. Today, Sunday, I started inner on both races, my preference because I find I can build my first corner a lot faster on the inner lane than an outer first corner as my starts are not the best, and I PBd both my 500m and 1,000m.

My very first ever 500m was a 43.89, the start of this season it was a 41.29 and I ended the season with a new PB of 38.99.....and that's all I wanted, to be in the 38s cause as you know, the 500m wasn't really my race. I needed a 37.50 to qualify so here I needed 3.75 secs and managed 2.25 secs this season but I am pleased with this result as I didn't expect much here.

My very first ever 1,000m was a 1:23.11, the start of this season it was a 1:20.86 and I ended the season with a new PB of 1:16.07....CAN YOU BELIEVE IT???.....8/100th off to be in the 1:15 zone that I needed!! I needed a 1:15 to qualify so here I had to make up almost 6 secs and I managed 5 secs over the season.....phew, talk about a stressful last race!!

Now I send these times to Greece and see what they have to say. We also wait for Olympic times to be posted around July and then see if I have a realistic chance of driving towards the ultimate goal...the 2010 Olympics.

It has been quite a remarkable year and when I get home, I will wrap up this blog until further news.

I am actually doing my last wash as we speak.....I pack tomorrow, and hit the road on Tuesday...and just like that....the season is over and another chapter had ended.

In the pic is the Spire but this time, with the Olympic flame lit (click on picture)......it was lit, supposedly, to mark the start of the ParaOlympic Games next year.....I also heard, and know, that CTV was filming the "Do you believe" commercials for next years Games.....how do I know??....cause I was there when they were filming Danielle Goyette and some of our Dino girls for one of those commercials....cool....then I asked...."c'mon man...let me say it too....do you believe?"....and they said..."who are you?"....and so I got my answer....heh heh.

Now I am gonna crack a beer, Polish, for the Polish guy that beat me, by a little bit, in the 500m and a Sapporo, for Mongolian guy, man they're fast, that beat me, by a little bit, in the 1,000m....I know I know....but there was no Mongolian beer around.

Until soon,

Peace.

1,500m......my nemesis!!

Well, first race done....the 1,500m...the race everyone loves to hate as it just makes you explode!!

The very first time I ever did this race, I clocked a 2:19.86....the start of this season, it became a 2:05.65 and this final race, which I PBd again but only by 2/10nths and I was looking for at least 2 secs, I clocked in at 1:58.64.....7 secs off from the beginning of my time here....unfortunately....World Cup time for this distance is 1:55. In short, I needed to make up 10secs this season and only made up 7secs. Three seconds is a matter of technique....plain and simple.

Tomorrow is another day....a sprint day....a 500m and a 1,000m, the distance which I am very close to qualifying in. The 500m is a fun, fast race and it kinda preps you for the 1,000m....it is not my distance but I like doing them.

In the pics, yesterdays skate prep....sharpening, tuning, and sun tanning of course!!

Peace.

Champions......Finally!!

Well, it took the girls all 5 games in this series to get 'er done but they are now Champions!! Although it was a very interesting year with the girls....I must say that it was great to see the genuine joy on their faces when the clock ticked down to zero and the buzzer went....tears, hugs, and of course....screams...heh heh.

Now, I am in my final week here with my races starting on Friday. I must say that yesterday it hit me that I will be leaving here....all the familiarity of driving the same road everyday, the Oval, the gym, my routine, the great people at Safeway where I do my groceries......I will miss it all in a quirky way cause as much as I wanna get home to my girls and actually back to work, this has become a part of my life and I think I will need a month of adjustment which suits me fine as I will not be working out for awhile.....I will definately need to relax this body!!

I am feeling really good about this week....confident and strong. I did a simulated 1,500m race very early Saturday morning with about 5hrs sleep because of the girls hockey the night before but it went well....hovered around my last PB.

The guys at the Oval were prepping the ice yesterday...scraping, cleaning, and a hose flood.....it's gonna be fast!!

I will keep you all posted race by race.....

Peace.

A good training week....

One more hard week of training this week and then it's race week.....I can't wait!!

This past week was a very good training week with more speed and interval training. I felt strong and confident on the ice. Since there was no weekend racing, most of us did simulated racing on our own during practice session....you prepare exactly as you would if really racing. I did a 1,000m sim race and actually PBd but I wouldn't call it a true PB as things are done with a stopwatch so human error must be calculated in that. Nonetheless, even though I was feeling a bit tight from the hard week of training, the race went well.

During the North American race here in February, I met a U.S coach, Bob, and he actually gave me a lot of advice and was there to support me during my races which was very helpful. I am actually doing his program, that he sent me, for the last 2 weeks before race prep and I really like the change and the tempo. It just goes to show you that we are always learning....thanks Bob.

I will repeat this training for this week and cap it off with a simulated 1,500m race....that should have me ready for next week.

The back spasms have subsided a little bit so that helps.....also, my good friend Sheila, a homeopath, advised me about a natural product called Arnica which a lot of athletes take and should help me with the back spasms. I am truly a skeptic when it comes to things like this but at this point, I am willing to try anything and she swears by it....we'll see by the end of this week....thank you Sheila. I am still on advil but only one morning pill and that's it instead of three a day.

The Dinos went into triple overtime last night and lost 1-0....a heart-breaker and a nail-biter. The series, a 3 out of 5 is now tied 1-1....I guess we are really gonna take this to the end.

Well, until next week...time is drawing quickly to a close....

Peace.

The final stretch.....

The big red paper clip.....at least that's what people call it......it is actually called the "Spire" and I walk underneath it every morning as it is at the entrance of the Oval. In front of it is where the Olympic flame stayed lit....

It is exactly 19.88m high which symbolizes the 1988 Olympic Games. Each of the the 4pair of 'legs' which extend from the ground symbolize crawl, walk, run, jump, and the final 5th pair, which doesn't touch the ground, symbolizes...fly. It demonstrates the path of an athlete....

At the other entrance, a picture of a speed skater also in red metal.......you know you are at the Oval!!

Well, March 1st today......2 weeks of hard training coming and then the 3rd week will be race week.......I am really pumped!! I am actually very excited to skate these next 2 weeks.......although I still have my back spasms, I am feeling very strong and am looking forward to working hard.

I cannot believe I only have 3 weeks left here.......I think I may go into some kind of withdrawl or adjustment period when I get home.......don't know if it will be a good thing or a hard thing yet......

The Dinos got through their semi final round this weekend winning 2 straight of a 2 out of 3 series against an Edmonton team........thank God no more road trips.....I haven't ridden the bus since my Junior hockey days......I now remember how much 'un-fun' they were and still are.......nevertheless, we are in the finals starting next weekend.

This series will be 3 out of 5 so maybe it will go over 2 weekends.......finishing exactly at the same time as my last 2 training weeks.

So........I have had some great success with my skating this season and also great success with the Dinos hockey team this season.......with both coming to an end at the same time.......the climax is just killing me.......it's like reading a thrilling book that just grasps you and you keep wondering what will happen next and how it will all end??!!.........you don't wanna put it down and you don't wanna it to end........but like everything.......an outcome for both will soon become a reality.....stay tuned.

Peace.